made in indonesia

how much better are squire guitars that are made in indonesia compared to ones made in china if at all?

thanks

Eggmond

06-01-2010, 05:10 PM

a good bit in my experience but it varies

Funk Monk

06-01-2010, 05:18 PM

Neither, but I say Indonesia and here's why:

Guitars from china and indonesia are one and the same. You see companies choose places like china, indonesia, etc. for much cheaper labor and production costs.

Indonesia has the upper hand only because in recent years they have improved the QC department, but that makes the location irrelevant.

Basically, I would try out both and see which one is more comfortable.

ZILtoid_1991

06-01-2010, 05:22 PM

It varies from the same quality to the really better.
And also a lot depend on the used materials. Most indonesian and chinesse guitar made from cheap wood, so your guitar won't be good sounding or long lasting. Mine (Ibanez GRX40, made in indonesia) guitar's neck is discoloured at some parts.

Brian Krashpad

06-01-2010, 05:33 PM

Depends on the model, factory, and luck of the draw. I have a Chinese-made Squier Vintage Modified Thinline Tele that's perfectly giggable dead stock, and previously owned a MIC Squier Bullet Strat (modded into a 2xP-90 guitar) that was also cool. Currently own an Indonesian-made Daisy Rock 12-string Retro-H, and previously owned the 6-string model as well; again, both are/were giggable (the sixer I had was stock, the 12 has different pickups installed by previous owner), no real appreciable overall quality difference.

I have a Chinese-made Fernandes Ravelle Deluxe which can actually hang with my USA-made guitars.

Go by the guitar, not the country on the back of the headstock. Price and specs are a better indicator of quality than country of origin, though even an expensive USA-made guitar can be a dog or just meh.

webwarmiller

06-01-2010, 05:40 PM

In my experience the Indo Squiers are better in regards to fit and finish. Fret ends are generally better dressed and the neck pocket is routed cleaner. Now, with that said the newer Chinese Squiers are using slightly better hardware (tuners are still crap) and ALL the bodies are solid wood (no more Indo plywood). The new Chinese Squiers have a chunkier neck than the older Indo Squiers which I really like. I do a lot of work on guitars and it's not hard to turn any Squier into a real player....newer Chinese take a bit more work but the end result can actually end up better than the Indo ones.

For the person who said: " Most indonesian and chinesse guitar made from cheap wood, so your guitar won't be good sounding or long lasting." That's simply not true. The wood used in just about any guitar (outside of plywood) will generally be just fine. It's just that that inexpensive guitars have little to no hand finishing. Give me 3-4 hrs with even the cheapest Squier Bullet neck and I'll have it playing as well or better than any off-the-self MIA Fender Neck. I'll roll the fretboard edges, bullet the fret ends, and then level/recrown/dress the frets. That's where the difference lies....it's not the materials....

MrFlibble

06-01-2010, 05:52 PM

I've yet to find an Indonesian made guitar that has any dodgy frets, poor routing, etc. Most I've found wrong with an Indoneisan made guitar from any brand was a bubble in the finish. On the other hand I've never found a Chinese-made guitar that doesn't have badly fitted frets, poor routing or finish flaws.

That said, the Indonesian made guitars seem to be made of lower quality wood with worse hardware and electronics, while Chinese-made guitars, though they're not put together well, seem to generally be made of better parts at their core.

evmac

06-01-2010, 09:34 PM

my rga42fm is from Indonesia and it's brilliantly put together, though I've played some Mexican and Chinese guitars where the QC was not there. The finish was shottie, the electronics didn't function properly and the guitar never stayed in tune. The best thing to do is to try the guitar and see how it plays.

r0ckth3d34n

06-01-2010, 10:10 PM

Lots of low to middle-high end Ibanez guitars are made in Indonesia. My friend's Iceman ICT700 (cost like $800) is made in Indonesia and it's a great guitar.

utmbarto

06-01-2010, 11:54 PM

My first guitar was an Indo strat and it was amazing. All I did was change the pickups and it was a perfectly gigable guitar. I used it for a couple years as my main guitar until I got my 60th Anni strat.

jazzblack05

06-02-2010, 01:21 AM

For Cort guitar made in indonesia they are great!! The finishing are awesome.

g.adrianp

06-02-2010, 07:04 AM

im currently using an indonesian manufactured squier strat
i compared it with the chinese
well the indonesian manufactured's playability's better,the tone is better too i think,and i think the finishing's better
well the chinese's 120$ and the indo's 200$

id recommend the indo's..

(just sharing my thoughts)

SeeEmilyPlay

06-02-2010, 07:06 AM

I'd say neither. A Squier is a squier and those guitars suck. You're better off at least buying MIM fender.

MrFlibble

06-02-2010, 01:19 PM

I'd say neither. A Squier is a squier and those guitars suck. You're better off at least buying MIM fender.Pick up a Classic Vibe series Squier some time. There's a good reason why some shops are now selling them at the same price as MIM Fender Standards; they're noticeably better, so long as you don't mind not having 'Fender' on the headstock. The CV Tele in particular is a great buy as it is currently the only pine-bodied Telecaster in common production.

erisidharta

06-02-2010, 01:53 PM

there is nothing wrong with indo guitars. just like in the rest of the world, machines took over the large part of the process. i've been to cort, musicman, ibanez, squier, mightymite, and fender factories in indo since i am a native indonesian. they are located in a same industrial area in east java. those factories have a very good QC departments, believe me. just because producing guitar in indo is much cheaper than in the us or korea, doesnt mean that we suck at it.